Wednesday, December 18, 2019

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Days after making a great run to the NCAA Division II national championship match, four Western Washington players have been named as Division II Scholar All-Americans by the United Soccer Coaches.

Senior defender Emily Nelson and forward Karli White were both named to the first team. Junior midfielder Grace Eversaul was elected to the second team while senior defender Annaliese Laurila was named to the third team.

All four were also named the organization’s Division II Women’s Scholar All-West Region First Team. They were joined by a pair of second-team selections from Seattle Pacific: senior defender Asia Cayetano and junior forward Sophia Chilczuk.

The quartet of Western Washington players helped lead the program to its second appearance in the NCAA Division II championship, dropping a 1-0 double-overtime thriller to Grand Valley State. The Vikings finished the season with a 23-3-0 overall record and an unblemished 12-0-0 conference mark.

White, the GNAC Player of the Year and a First Team All-American by both the United Soccer Coaches and the D2CCA, has a 3.39 GPA as a sociology major. She led the GNAC with 102 shots and nine assists, was second with 23 points and seventh with seven goals. She shared the conference lead with four game-winning goals and finished the year ranked 21st in Division II in assists.

The GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, Nelson was also named a consensus First Team All-American and earned Scholar All-American honors with her 3.55 GPA as a kinesiology major. Nelson led a Vikings’ defense that led Division II with a 0.34 goals against average, allowed nine total goals and just 6.8 shots per match. Western Washington outscored opponents 62-9 on the season. In addition, Nelson scored four goals on the season, including the game-winner in the 1-0 West Regional championship win over Point Loma.

Eversaul, who has a 3.38 GPA as an environmental science major, was named a Third Team All-American by the D2CCA. She led the Vikings and finished tied for second in the GNAC with eight goals and was third with 21 points. Eversaul also tied for seventh in the GNAC with five assists.

Laurila, who has a 3.54 GPA as a marketing and management major, was also a key cog in the potent Western Washington defense. A Second Team All-GNAC selection, Laurila was a starter in 15 matches, missing the final 11 of the season due to injury.

Cayetano and Chilczuk were recognized with Scholar All-West Region honors for their part in leading Seattle Pacific to a 12-8-0 overall record, a second-place GNAC finish at 9-3-0 and a run to the GNAC Women’s Soccer Championships final. Both players were also First Team All-GNAC selections and Second Team United Soccer Coaches All-West Region honorees.

Cayetano, who has a 3.79 GPA as a physiology major, led a solid Seattle Pacific defense that allowed just one goal per match and a 0.98 goals against average. A starter in 19 of the Falcons’ 20 matches, Cayetano also registered two assists on the season. Chilczuk, who has a 3.84 GPA as a physiology major, tied for second in the GNAC with eight goals and was fifth with 19 points.